Wedding Resources By Digby & Rose

10 Best Online Wedding Invitation Stores

Friday, June 15, 2012

Best Online Luxury Wedding Invitation Stores

Searching for the best wedding invitation store to design your luxury wedding invitations, wedding stationery, and even your save the date cards can be a challenge, especially if you’re not a graphic artist with an intimate knowledge of letterpress and foil stamp printing processes and limitations. Digby & Rose has put together a list of the top 10 luxury wedding invitation stores to help relieve some of the stress of searching the vast online space for that one perfect place that has all the design, communication, customer service and printing skills necessary to do the job. Whether it’s cotton, bamboo, silk or wood, the feel of the invitation is as important as the look. Bringing a custom wedding invitation to life takes not only design skills, but experience with new and antique printing and finishing methods. Invitations send an important message about the wedding, and that message changes based on the design of the typography, the size and shape, and the finishing details. For those going for elegant simplicity, it can easily be achieved by using a large formal size letterpress invitation with matching letterpress RSVP, reception card and envelopes, all designed around a clean balanced typography. For something more, there’s silk boxes, ribbons, ties, envelope liners, inner and outer envelopes, calligraphy, matching postage stamps, die cut shapes for the invitation and envelopes, pocketfolds, belly bands, faux jewelry clips and custom designed laser cut wraps.

10 Questions to Ask The Online Store Before You Buy

  1. Can you customize any design to fit my style? If so, how much will it cost?
  2. What is the turnaround from print approval to receiving my invitations?
  3. Do you have an in house design staff? What’s the hourly rate?
  4. Can you make the wedding day paper and thank you notes and can I order them after I receive my invites?
  5. How long does it take to get my first proof?
  6. If I need to make changes, how long does it take before I see them?
  7. How many changes can I make to the text before I incur a fee?
  8. Will you be able to help me with the wording on the invitation and reply card?
  9. Can I assemble, tie and/or glue the pieces in order to save money?
  10. What’s your favorite font?

diy wedding options

1. Digby & Rose Wedding Invitations

Website: Click Here for Digby & Rose
3711 Macomb St NW
Suite #4
Washington, DC 20016
Phone: 202-652-1556

Digby & Rose is a Washington D.C. luxury wedding invitation company that prides itself in its personal service and a love for typography that is unmatched. Owner Heather Noss began Digby & Rose in 2008 after serving seven years as a U.S. diplomat overseas. She has been nurturing a secret love of paper and fonts since she was 8 years old which led her to invent the company’s own printing process called Letterpress Light. Unique only to Digby & Rose, this process creates deeper impressions in the paper than regular letterpress. Their wide selection of design options can be fitted to each client’s style. Their work has been recognized by the Washingtonian, Style Me Pretty and Brides magazines and was voted by the users of The Knot, The 2012 Best of Weddings Pick. A Digby & Rose invitation have announced some of the best events on the planet and has included Grammy winners, diplomats, and more. Each order is a custom price quote, but the most basic order (one color letterpress invitation and reply card with two flat printed envelopes) for 100 invitations starts at $650. Moving to something more formal in size, RSVP cards and inserts, more letterpress colors, foil stamps and a heavier paper the average cost for 100 luxury wedding invitations is $2800.

2. Lela New York Luxury Invitation and Stationery Design

Website: Click Here for Lela
192 Lexington Avenue, Second Floor
New York, NY 10016
Phone: 212-802-1438

Lela New York is an award winning design studio that focuses on luxury wedding invitations. They sell boxed invitations that are covered in fabric with unique decorations specifically designed for each client. Their classic stationery invitations are printed on high quality paper and are designed to the client’s specifications. Although every order is custom, prices are based on 100 sets. The classic envelopes range from $13.50 – $28.00 and the fabric and box sets range from $28 – $90. Lela New York is based in New York, but they work with clients worldwide including celebrities and royalty. They have been featured in Brides Magazine, The Knot and the New York Post.

3. Elum Designs

Website: Click Here for Elum Designs
4650 Overland Avenue
San Diego, CA 92123-1259
Phone: 858-650-3586

With high-style modern designs and sumptuous materials, they have revitalized the centuries old art form of letterpress printing. Their collection of letterpress wedding invitations, letterpress invitations, letterpress stationery and designer paper products features custom artwork that reflects the most current trends in the world of design and fashion. They offer the bride to be the ability to order directly from their site or visit one of their resellers to find the perfect wedding invitation. In addition to wedding invitations they also offer special occasion invitations such as bar mitzvah invitations, bat mitzvah invitations, custom party invitations, save the date cards and baby announcements.

4. Hannah Handmade

Website: Click Here for Hannah Handmade
1330 Sherman Avenue
Evanston, IL 60201
Phone: 847-864-8292

Andrea Liss founded Hannah Handmade in 1991, and has grown the company from a small one-woman operation to a trend-setting leader in the stationery industry. They have taken on many types of custom projects ranging from stationery ensembles for weddings and social events to corporate and non-profit invitations. Andrea draws upon her 20-plus years as a professional designer to bring her clients the very best in both style and substance to make that special day something you will remember for a lifetime. Andrea has designed some beautiful invitations for companies such as The Art Institute of Chicago, Auburn University, BP, BizBash Media, Blue Plate Catering, Campbell Soup Company, Catalyst Exhibits, Merrill Lynch, and McDonald’s.

5. Beyond Inviting Couture

Website: Click Here for Beyond Inviting Couture
La Costa, California
Phone: 760-436-5722

Since 2003, Beyond Inviting Couture has been creating custom invitations that epitomize luxury. Created by Karyn Dunn and based in San Diego, Beyond Inviting Couture offers an almost unlimited number of design options from simple to extravagant. Their wedding invitations are made with the highest quality cardstock and textured paper. They can be further decorated with extras such as brooches and ribbons. These special touches are what clients can expect of a Beyond Inviting Couture wedding invitation. They also offer a variety of printing options, such as letterpress, engraving and embossing, which further individualizes the finished product. Prices are based on each order because of their uniqueness, but the minimum order is $2000.

6. Chin Chin Papers

Website: Click Here for Chin Chin Papers
Phone: 1-800-573-0906

Chin Chin Papers will create invitations to match each client’s vision of their event. Started by Renee Rodriguez, this couture invitation company designs romantic cards inspired by fashion, the social life in Paris, historic art and modern design. Chin Chin Papers offers a variety of printing options including letterpress, thermography, calligraphy and digital printing to match the theme of each order. Invitations can be presented in an invitation box and can be decorated with paper flowers, brooches, jewels, and satin ribbons. They have a couture collection for those wanting the extravagant and a signature collection for those with simple and elegant taste.

7. Smock Paper

Website: Click Here for Smock Paper
509 W Fayette St,
Syracuse, NY 13204
Phone: 800-5949845

Their print shop includes 20 antique presses, 50 tons of equipment, and 17 employees. Their print shop resides west of downtown in the Delavan Center which also houses some of Syracuse’s best painters, photographers, sculptors, and ceramists, as well as Syracuse’s largest art gallery.

Smock’s creative director and designer Amy Graham Stigler’s love for beautiful and beautifully made things, dates back to her childhood in Wisconsin, where she spent her time running from pillar to post, exploring and sketching the minutiae of nature. Her childhood love of art and books eventually turned into a profession: she studied art history while working at the Art Institute of Chicago and The Museum of Contemporary Art.

The team at Smock Paper describe themselves as “faithful lovers of historic craft with letterpress ink in our veins.” Their designers and printers believe in the creation of beautiful things.

8. Luxe Expressions

Website: Click Here for Luxe Expressions
Atlanta, Georgia
Phone: 770-424-6192

Debra Saba, the founder of Luxe Expressions, creates designs inspired by her world travels. With a background in graphic design and journalism, each couture invitation makes a statement about who the client is. They are printed on the best cotton paper with letterpress, engraving or lithography. Each invitation can be adorned with decorations, fabric and ribbons. All their materials are eco-friendly. Clients can design a completely unique invitation or they can choose from designs on the website. Each invitation set includes the invitation, mailing envelope, and response card and envelope. They are all made to feel like a gift for the recipient opening it. The minimum order is 50 pieces.

9. Clover Creek

Website: Click Here for Clover Creek
69 Sea Meadow Drive
South Dennis, Massachusetts 02660
Phone: 508-259-0696

Clover Creek can create invitations for all individual tastes. They are an eco-friendly company that uses paper from renewable plants rather than trees. Featured in magazines such as Town & Country, Clover Creek offers unique touches that set them apart. Not only are their invitations decorated with rhinestones, pearls and charms, but clients have the option of natural items such as dried flowers, leaves and seashells. The envelopes are sealed with monogrammed wax as a special finishing touch. With a wide variety of printing methods such as letterpress and copper engraving, clients are ensured a completely individualized wedding invitation.

10. Elegant Custom Invitations

Website: Click Here for ECI
2620 Fountainview Drive
Suite 201
Houston, Texas 77057
Phone: 713-408-9407

Located in Houston, Texas, Elegant Custom Invitations design wedding invitations that meet all the customer’s needs, including style and budget. They make sure that guests have a lasting first impression with their unique invitations. There are two lines of invitations to accommodate all budgets. The custom line includes pocketfold cards, flat cards and folded cards. Invitations in the couture line are presented in silk boxes, folios and box mailers. Clients have a wide assortment of decorations to choose from including satin and silk ribbons, Swarovski crystal and brooches. Lettering can be printed by engraving, flat printing, letterpress or thermography. The minimum order for the custom line is 50 invitations and 25 for the couture line.

[Infographic] Guide to Save-The-Date Etiquette, Wording & Ideas

Friday, May 25, 2012

You might know all the ins and outs of sending luxury wedding invitations, but save-the-date etiquette, wording, and even design ideas are sometimes less clear.

Save-the-date cards are sent to your guests 6 to 8 months before your wedding date so that your guests can mark it on their calendars and make travel arrangements. They should be sent out even sooner, up to a year in advance, if you are having a destination wedding or during a high travel season. For instance, Cape Cod in the summer, San Diego during Comic-Con International, Mexico in the winter during peak travel season or perhaps Washington, DC during an inauguration. If you are getting married in a relatively small town, you’ll still have to check, you might end up competing with hotel rooms with the annual Texas Bigfoot abductees support group (you never know). The point of using a Save The Date is to be gracious to your guests by giving them enough time with their busy schedules so that they can make travel arrangements well enough in advance and maybe use those airline and credit card points. Save-the-date notices are also used for non destination weddings if more than 25% of your guests are coming in from out of town and your event coincides with a peak travel season.

Digby & Rose, a leading online resource, designer, and letterpress print shop for wedding invitations & stationery wants to help you with your save-the-date cards. Their first wedding guide covered how to choose a wedding photographer and their second guide below will give you everything you need to know about save-the-date etiquette, wording, and even ideas for custom cards.

save the date cards

Guide to Save-The-Date Cards

Embed This Save-The-Date Infographic

10 Tips For Having an Eco-Friendly and Green Wedding

Tuesday, May 8, 2012

Eco-Friendly Green Wedding

With over two million weddings each year in the United States that produce over sixty tons of carbon dioxide and several hundred pounds of garbage, it is no surprise that many engaged couples are making more eco-friendly choices when planning their wedding. From the choosing the invitations and wedding dress to picking the best flowers and lighting, even the smallest decisions can make a huge difference to the environment that cost less and are equally beautiful. These tips will give you eco-friendly wedding ideas that you can use when planning your dream wedding.

1. Choose an Eco-Friendly Reception Location

There are several things that can be done to make sure the wedding and reception location is eco-friendly. Outdoor weddings are not only beautiful but better for the environment as well because lighting, heating and cooling are provided by the sun and climate. If an indoor venue is preferable, select a location that is LEED certified, or built with health and environmental concerns in mind, and promotes sustainability. To reduce emissions and fossil fuels from transportation needs, consider having the wedding and reception in the same location. If two locations are unavoidable, provide group transportation such as a bus or limo.

2. Choose Eco-Friendly Wedding Rings

The wedding rings symbolize a couple’s love and commitment to each other, but they can also symbolize a commitment to a healthy environment. Jewelers that use recycled metals and antique stores that sell wedding rings lower the need for freshly mined gold. Better yet, a family member’s jewelry that has been passed down from one generation to the next is not only eco-friendly but has sentimental value.

3. Eco-Friendly Photos

Wedding photos should last a lifetime, but there is no need to waste paper or use strong chemicals. More and more wedding photographers are using digital photography which is paperless and chemical free. Many will even display proofs online to save paper and ink. Also, leave out the disposable cameras at the reception. Most guests bring their own cameras anyway, which saves waste. More tips for choosing a wedding photographer can be found here.

4. Find an Eco-Friendly Invitation Company

Some invitations use lots of paper, so if that is the case, make sure they are printed on recycled paper or order from an eco-friendly invitation company that sells a one piece RSVP card in a postcard style. Encouraging guests to recycle their invitations is another way to save paper. This can be done by using paper that has embedded seeds that when planted and watered a small wild flower garden will appear. In this age of computers, many couples are opting to use wedding websites for their information cards, but for this once in a lifetime event, it seems that people need to hold an invitation in their hands.

5. Dining Choices

The dining choices couples make for their wedding can have a huge impact on the environment. Choosing caterers who use seasonal, organic and local ingredients lessen the environmental impact and support the local economy. Buying locally saves the fuel consumption needed to transport food and saves the energy needed to keep the food fresh. Serving local beverages is also a plus. Additionally, replacing disposable dishes and utensils for china and silverware not only reduces waste, but adds elegance.

6. Wedding Favors

Wedding favors are a considerate gesture for the guests, and choosing useful and reusable items is kind to the environment also. Homemade edible favors, potted plants and tree saplings are all thoughtful gifts that won’t end up in the trash, and guests can enjoy in their homes. Another idea for eco-friendly wedding favors is to make a donation to a charity in the guests’ names.

7. Your Wedding Dress

For the bride-to-be, the wedding dress is one of the most important purchases for the upcoming nuptials. New wedding gowns are used only once. Brides have many other eco-friendly options that will avoid using up new raw materials. Searching vintage and consignment shops may lead to a unique designer gown that otherwise may not have been affordable. Wearing a family member’s gown, a mother or grandmother for example, would add a personal touch.

8. Choose Local and Organic Flowers

Local, organic and in-season flowers are the most eco-friendly because they don’t have to be shipped from long distances and aren’t treated with chemicals. Flowers are often shipped from other countries which not only require transportation, but they are often treated with pesticides. Additionally, they can be reused for both the wedding and reception and can be donated or given away afterward to get the most use out of them.

9. Conserve Energy With Eco-Friendly Lighting

Lighting should be a consideration when planning an eco-friendly wedding. Especially in large reception halls, a huge amount of electricity is required to fuel lighting. LED lighting reduces energy use dramatically while retaining the full brightness required for the space. Also, candles are a great way to illuminate a room without using any electricity at all. Soy candles are especially good for the environment because they are made from all-natural ingredients.

10. Eco-Friendly Confetti

The custom of tossing confetti over the bride and groom is a delightful gesture, but the remains are harmful to the environment. Eco-friendly confetti won’t harm wildlife and dissolves with rain. Alternatives that are just as environmentally safe are bubbles, rose petals, and bird seed.

In conclusion, a completely eco-friendly wedding is possible with the proper planning.

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